It still comes down to who has the best players. When Saban's recruiting skills begin to drop off, Alabama will begin to lose close games it would have otherwise won.

Players should be paid their true value if there is to be any fairness in the sport.

The reason that legalized gambling hasn't existed in Alabama ever, be it sports or a lottery is because other states have used religion as a guise to keep their own coffers filled. They'd lose money that would otherwise line their own pocketbooks. But get the Southern Baptists and Conservative Presbyterians motivated enough, and there will never be legal gambling in any form in this state. They are mutually parasitic relationships.

I was not sold on Oats at the outset, but I am now.

Whew. That was a close one. Now it remains to see if we'll be a 1 seed or 2 seed.

Speaking as a Tide fan, I feared an Arkansas rematch. I feel much more confident that we'll win tomorrow against LSU.

far more CHANCES

Probst is a loose cannon. He coached at my high school and turned them into a powerhouse, but he has no morals or scruples and will do anything to win. The fact that anyone wants to hire him and put up with his drama always surprises me. He's been given far more chance than anyone ever should.

"Money is always there but the pockets change; it is not in the same pockets after a change, and that is all there is to say about money."-Gertrude Stein

*sigh* Why is it so easy for threads like these to be derailed by politics? An attack on one man isn't an attack on all men, or an attack on their personal politics.

fits of TEMPER. I'm not awake yet.

But this implies that a person is not trust-worthy enough to handle himself or herself without a chaperone. It's long been rumored here in Alabama that private parties were pitched for Bear Bryant, gatherings pitched by gatekeepers that concealed his heavy drinking and fits of tempter. But in those days, much of his private life was kept secret, especially his frequenting of dog tracks and gambling.

There is much more to this story. As to whether or not it will all come out with time is debatable. This makes me glad that Alabama decided to fire Mike Price before he set foot on a the field. He could have been even more of a liability had his behavior been tolerated.

Alabama continues to play excellent defense, which has kept them more or less consistently winning games. When we hit three-pointers with any continuity, we can beat anyone in the conference. This Alabama team disappoints me some because they try a little too hard at times to showboat and make impulsive decisions. Reckless play has cost us a game or two and I hope they calm things down when it comes down for the SEC tournament and especially March Madness. The unpredictability of the NCAA tournament is why we like it as much as we do, but it does tend to favor teams with hot hands and win streaks like Arkansas. Right now I'd say even odds between the Razorbacks and the Crimson Tide.

Impossible to make predictions before taking a single snap. Could be a bust, could be a huge success. I've seen mid-round players become NFL superstars and first-rounders never reach more than mediocre status in the pros. I wish him the best.

I'll be the first to admit that I totally was preparing myself for defeat, and had moved off of the couch away from the television prior to the fateful plan. I didn't want to see us lose and knew we were done for if we'd needed to kick a field goal to send the game into a second overtime. And the next words out of my mouth were, verbatim, "Oh my God. We just won!"

Of course CBS wouldn't make light of this, LSUMC. It only happened on maybe two instances, but it was very real when it did. I remember my ex-wife, watching Miles' and Wolfson's interaction at the time, and her saying, "Wow, she really hates him." My memory is not that bad. And no network wants there to be a drama storm of feuding between one of their employees and a prominent coach. Trust me, it happened. I think Wolfson was the better person here and being that she is still employed by CBS, I bet she can't talk about it if she wanted to. And, she may not choose to come forward. That's her decision.

I remember watching the body language between Miles when he was coach and former sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson. When she interviewed him prior to the game, it was clear to everyone that he'd made her extremely angry for some reason. I wasn't there; I have no intimate knowledge, but perhaps Miles said something crude or sexually harassing to her. It was easy to see the look of pure hatred she showed him. CBS tamped down on it, of course, and I recall an ESPN interview with Miles and the team the day after the game. Miles made a point of having his wife sit next to him. Damage control, perhaps? Wolfson could break her silence, but might not be able to do so due to contractual agreements as part of her contract with CBS. Maybe there's a YouTube video floating around out there to prove my point.

We do take college football too seriously here. I'd much rather us focus on more important things, but I suppose it's better to be good at something than to be good at nothing.

The NFL chews players up and spits them out. This is especially true for offensive lineman, defensive lineman, and running backs. It is kinder to wide receivers like Julio Jones. How many of Bear Bryant's players achieved superstar status? I can think of Joe Namath and Kenny Stabler off the top of my head, and then Ozzie Newsome. Lee Roy Jordan, maybe? John Hannah. Am I leaving anyone out?

Anything can happen in the NCAA tournament. That's why it's always such a crapshoot and exciting. I hope Alabama does well, but if they have an off-day and can't hit threes, they won't last very long. I'm a UAB grad, and I remember being thrilled that we beat Iowa State in 2005 as a 13 seed, even though we immediately lost the next game. We should go again this year, and my expectations are low. C-USA is a weak league, as much as I hate to admit it.

The Christian Laettner of college football.

It's entirely possible that he'll be able to thrive in a much less competitive league. But it's also possible he'll be a mediocre coach and become bowl eligible every now and again. This is an interesting hire.

Sundance: "You just keep thinking, Butch. That’s what you’re good at."

Who knows? He might qualify for the Independence Bowl and the Music City Bowl every now and again.

best TEAMS, rather.

Let's make it fair and standardized. What we used to call Division II, Division III, and lower classes than that have used a playoff system for years. I understand the issue about maintaining the integrity of the bowl system, but that's a tough argument to make because there are so many now. Back in the day, there were relatively few, and only the best times got invited.

Sometimes, college success simply does not translate to pro success. Sometimes, players who were considered middle-of-the-pack in college thrive as pro players. Tom Brady went in the sixth round. Bart Starr made nary a ripple when he played at Alabama, going in the 17th Round, yet his Green Bay Packers won the first two Super Bowls.

He was never much of a kicker, but his mediocracy will fit in well at Vanderbilt.

Nor do you know how to spell "you're". So welcome to hypocrisy, buddy.